This invention relates generally to exercise bicycles and particularly to a coin-operated drive resistance assembly for an exercise bicycle.
Exercise bicycles have long been used by athletes and non-athletes alike as an aid to maintaining fitness. In general, such "bicycles" have only a front wheel which is raised from the ground and driven by a chain to simulate the sensation of cycling. Virtually all exercise bicycles are provided with some means of applying frictional resistance to the motion of the front wheel, usually by the application of a pressure roller to the front wheel tire, and in most cases the pressure is variable to suit the particular requirements of the user.
There is a need for a coin-operated exercise bicycle for use by those who wish to maintain their exercise routine while away from home and by those who do not have their own exercise bicycle. However, adapting the driven front wheel of a conventional bicycle to a coin-operated system presents problems because of the difficulty of mounting the drive resistance mechanism on the front wheel, quite apart from the tendency of such an assembly to destroy the illusion of unencumbered cycling. On the other hand, providing a rear wheel drive resistance mechanism demands a radical departure from the conventional exercise bicycle design.
The present coin-operated exercise bicycle overcomes these and other problems in a manner not revealed by the known prior art.